At a Glance

These frogs, as described by their name, typically have varying degrees of green heads. These frogs display significant acts of territoriality, with males being the primary actors. Male green frogs use this technique against other male frogs in addition to other intruders that might have interest in nearing their territory. Territoriality also plays a role in mating, as females favor males who are strong in this field and exhibit strong mating calls. Male green frogs use four different types of breeding calls to attract potential female mates. Predators that attack green frog's eggs include bugs such as beetles, water bugs, and water scorpions. Adult frogs are typically threatened by several types of birds.

Range & Identification

This species is a mid-sized true frog. Adult green frogs range from 5–10 cm (2.0–3.9 in) in body length (snout to vent, excluding the hind legs). The typical body weight of this species is from 28 to 85 g (0.99 to 3.00 oz).[8][9] The sexes are sexually dimorphic in a few ways: mature females are typically larger than males, the male tympanum is twice the diameter of the eye, whereas in females, the tympanum diameter is about the same as that of the eye, and males have bright yellow throats. The dorsolateral ridges, prominent, seam-like skin folds that run down the sides of the back, distinguish the green frog from the bullfrog, which entirely lacks them.

Conservation Concerns

Due to increasing destruction of their habitat, deforestation, climate change, diseases, and chemical contaminants, amphibian population decline and extinctions may be as high as 211 times the background extinction rate.[12] Both water and air temperatures play a major role in timing and rates of breeding, larval development, time-to-time metamorphosis, size-at-metamorphosis, growth, and physiological parameters. There is experimental data present that details how organisms are more sensitive to contaminants when there is variation in temperature, which explains how chemical contamination can greatly impact the development of these frogs. Chloride in particular affects the development of the Green Frog. Vast exposure to chloride can result in many larvae having broken tails, swollen body cavities, a loss of pigment, and behavioral abnormalities. As the temperature increased in the environment, the frogs had lower time-to-mortality and significantly higher hazard when compared to the controls. This shows how temperature directly affects sensitivity to chemicals and thereby the development of the Green Frog by making their habitat more dangerous.